Armored Core: Defining Moments
by KirKTimN
Summary: Rated T for violence and language. Updated! Sorry for the long wait. Made slight changes to chapter 1. please Read and Review!
1. Old Friends, New Discoveries

**_Armored Core: The Defining Moment  
_Chapter 1: Old Friends, New Discoveries**  
By KirKTimN 

_Disclaimer: I do not own Armored Core or any name in Armored Core. I'm just a fan who owns all the games for the PS2 and have enjoyed many of the stories about AC so I decided to try my own. A lot of the characters are based on my friends **by name only**. Any similarity other than names are purely coincidental and are in no way based on the actual people. I hope ya'll enjoy this story and please read and review._

Asteroid Belt  
1500 Terra Standard Time

The probe moved silently but with a purpose. Its sensors reached out in all directions trying to gather as much information as it could while dodging various chunks of rocks. Suddenly, the probe's eye winked once. It had found something.

Moving faster now, it zoomed towards the anomaly it had detected. It came a large asteroid, at least 500km in diameter. As the probe got closer, it began to receive strange data about the asteroid. It appeared that the asteroid was hollow and that there were some types of structures inside. As the recorded this information, the data was encrypted and transmitted back to Earth for analysis. As soon as that was done, the probe moved off in search of more data.

1 Year Later  
Unknown Location  
2000 Terra Standard Time

"Today marks the one year anniversary of the discovery of a very unusual asteroid. The asteroid, Panzer I, has been moved to an orbit between Earth and Mars. What makes this asteroid stand out is that the inside is _hollow_. In a very unique decision, the corporations from both Earth and Mars have agreed to set their differences aside and uncover the mysteries of Panzer I. Crews from Zio Matrix, Balena, Mirage, Crest, Emeraude, Kisaragi, and other corporations have gotten inside and are exploring the strange structures inside as we speak. We'll report back as soon as a new event as occurred."

"In other news, Midnight Incorporated, a fairly new corporation that specializes in stealth technology, has released several new parts for purchase this month. They include the ZS-XST01 Inside Part, the ZS-XST02 Armor Plates, the ZS-XSTPREDATOR stealth system, and the ZS-XSTCAP stealth generator. The specifications for these parts are available to the public for viewing. And now, for the…"

The screen blacked out before the reporter could finish her sentence. The man who was watching the screen walked over to the window and looked out at the sunset.

"So it begins," he said to no one in particular.

Neo Terra City  
1300 Terra Standard

Seraph looked at himself in the mirror.

_Shit. Great time to get nervous dumbass._

He ran his fingers through his blue and black hair as he walked around the small bathroom.

_Bad enough that you haven't seen her for a year but now you gotta get nervous and fuckin hurl your lunch five hours before she's suppose to arrive? Real smooth._

He walked back over to the sink and splashed some water on his face. After taking a couple of deep breaths, he looked once again into the mirror. Satisfied that he finally looked okay, he left his apartment and headed towards the spaceport.

Seraph traveled down the terminal looking at the gate numbers as he walked by.

_26… 27… 28, 29… 35! 35G, this is it._

He sat down in an empty chair and checked his watch.

_Still have 30 minutes. Might as well catch up on some sleep before she gets here._

"Hello… hello? Tim? Tim… is that really you?" a female voice called out.

"Uhhh… huh? wha…?" Seraph said groggily as he rubbed his eyes. "Kirsten? Kirsten…? Is that really you?"

"The one and only," she said while smiling. "It's been a while."

"It's been one year, one month, eight hours, and nineteen minutes."

"I see you haven't changed one bit!" she laughed. "Well, you have gotten cuter."

"If you say so. You haven't looked more beautiful than you do now. Are you ready to go?"

"Well, as soon as they finish unloading my AC and move it to the nearest garage, we can go."

"An AC? When did you become a Raven?"

"About a month after you left. I figured it'd be the best way to find you again."

"I see," Seraph smiled. "Okay then, let's go."

They walked out of the terminal and headed over to the garage where they saw Kirsten's AC being unloaded and moved to one of the bays. It was a lightweight biped with twin blade arms. The whole thing was painted a shade of green with blue trim. On its back with a linear cannon. Seraph noticed on the side of the core were the words Turbo Tim stenciled in white.

_So, she cares about me as much as I care about her._

"Hey where's your AC?"

"Hmmm? Oh it's that black one right beside it."

Kirsten looked at the AC in awe. It was a middleweight core with a Karasawa-Mk2 and a Moonlight blade. On the back was a laser cannon that looked like it could do some serious damage. The whole thing was black and had blue trim. The blue was so dark that it was only noticeable from certain angles. It gave the AC a blue glowing effect that made the AC shine. On the side of this core were the words Heaven's Angel stenciled in white.

"I see that your AC's heavily based on energy weapons. Aren't you afraid of running out of energy?"

"Not really. It's got a strong generator and it's fast enough that I usually don't need boosters to move around. What about yours? Other than the blades, the only weapon you have is that linear cannon and you have to kneel to do that."

"I don't take very many heavy hitting missions. I usually can hit my targets with the cannon and destroy most of the opposition. Then, I use my AC's speed to get in and cut up the rest of the enemies before they have time to counter attack."

"It looks like our ACs would work very well together. You can control the mid and short range while I concentrate on the middle ranged opponents. Very nice."

"I thought so as well. It's getting late, and I still have to find an apartment to stay in."

"You don't need to do that. I have room in my apartment. I can stay on the couch. I don't mind."

"Are you sure? I wouldn't want to impose…"

"Yes, I'm sure. Okay? Now let's go."

The next morning, Tim woke up with a big yawn. The couch wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep but he'd manage. He walked over to his bedroom and looked at the sleeping figure in his bed.

_She's so beautiful… I'm lucky to have her._

He went to the bathroom and shaved and took a shower. When he was done, he went out to the kitchen and made some coffee. As it was brewing, Seraph sat down in front of the computer and turned it on.

**System Online.  
No new mail.**

Seraph clicked on the search for new mission offers. There was one asking for a pair of Ravens to do some scouting for 100000 credits. Seraph opened it up and read what it said.

Requester: Mirage  
Reward: 100000  
Location: Shiara Base  
Mission:  
Shiara Base has been out of contact for quite some time now. We have sent a Raven in to investigate what has happened, but he has missed his check in time for over four hours now. We detected a large heat source followed by an energy spike just before the Raven disappeared. We fear something may have happened. We would like you and another Raven to go find out what has happened. We decided to hire two Ravens this time because of the high risk involved. Head to Shiara Base, and report your findings when you return.

The computer continued to list mission details after that.

_Perfect,_ Tim thought. _Looks like we have a mission._

With that he accepted the mission offer and went to go tell Kirsten the news.


	2. Untold Reasons

**_Armored Core: The Defining Moment_  
Chapter 2: Untold Reasons**  
By KirKTimN 

_Disclaimer: I do not own Armored Core or any name in Armored Core._

Somewhere near Shiara Base  
1040 Terra Standard Time

**Mission: Lost Sheep  
Client: Mirage  
Location: Shiara Base  
Security Level: 8  
Start Time: 1100  
Recommended Rank: B  
Estimated Success Rate: 45**

Seraph read the mission outline as it scrolled across the screen.

_They're paying an awful lot for a mission with a 45 success rate. I'm beginning to wonder if this is such a good idea…_

"_Ravens, ten minutes 'til drop. Get in your positions_," said the transport pilot over the comm.

Kirsten's helmeted face appeared in the corner of the viewscreen. "Are you ready for this?" she asked.

"Yeah, Kirsten. I just have a funny feeling that's all. Anyways, let's do this," Seraph replied.

"You know, Seraph, the mission's started. You should be calling me Tigress now."

Seraph laughed, "Okay, okay. Tigress it is."

"_One minute until drop. Opening rear doors._"

"Okay, it's time to go. See ya on the ground, Tigress."

"_DROP! Go, go, go!_"

With that command, Heaven's Angel slid off the end of the transport and into the sky. At first, the AC tumbled head over heels, but as it opened up its arms and legs, it began to stabilize into a controlled fall. A bit higher up and to the right of Heaven's Angel was Turbo Tim. Instead of doing what Heaven's Angel was doing, Tigress had decided to straighten out with the arms by its side making the AC rocket towards the earth below.

_Show-off_, Seraph thought. _Well, can't let her have all the fun._

Heaven's Angel followed suit except as it was falling it engaged its boosters. Within seconds both AC's were even, and Heaven's Angel stopped its boost to save energy for the landing.

As the ground neared, both AC's flipped in unison so that they were falling feet first. They both ignited their boosters to slow their rapid descent. When the AC's almost came to a stop in the air, the pilots tapped their boosters and floated their machines to the ground.

"Show-off," Tigress said over the comm.

"Hey, I was just catching up to you! You were the one flying towards the ground like a human comet!" came Seraph's quick reply.

"Is it wrong to have a little fun?"

"Is it wrong to join in on the fun?"

"Okay, alright. Point taken. So where to go from here?"

Seraph consulted his map and found that the base was located just outside the forest they had landed in. It was about maybe a 20-minute walk in the AC's. Heaven's Angel headed off in the direction of the base with Turbo Tim right behind it. During the trek, Seraph decided to ask Tigress more about what she did since they last saw each other.

"So why did you decide to become a Raven?"

"I already told you. I figured it was the best way to find you. What about you? After all that time we've been together, I never did figure that one out."

"Well, after going through so many missions as an MT pilot, I figured that piloting an AC would be the next step. So I took my test and here I am now."

"I've missed you…"

"I've missed you, too," Seraph said with a slight smile. "That's why I'm glad we're back together."

"Then why'd you leave?" Tigress's eyes looked fierce behind her visor. "Why did you just disappear?"

Heaven's Angel stopped just 100 meters from the forest's edge. The AC turned around, its red visor looking into the red eye of the other AC. Seraph hesitated. Then, he started slowly, "My last mission landed me in some trouble with some mercs. They weren't too thrilled with the fact that a Raven had spoiled their plans and wanted revenge. They attacked and killed one of my friends while he was out on a mission. I was afraid that they'd go after you next so I disappeared. I figured if I disappeared then they would believe that I was dead or something. I was wrong. I stayed in hiding after a while, and when I thought it was safe, I decided to take a mission. It turned out to be a trap. The mercs were still looking for me and had ambushed me while my transport was moving from Earth to Mars. I managed to kill two of them, but there were still two left. By this time, I was low on ammo and my armor was critical. The two AC's were fairly damaged but in much better shape then I was. They were closing in for the kill when suddenly the transport I was in came outta no where and rammed the AC with a linear cannon. It spun the AC and the merc accidentally shot his friend. The explosion from the AC and the transport took them both out, and I was left drifting in space. When they finally found me, I was pretty beat up from the battle. They sent to Neo Terra City where I stayed in a hospital for three months. When I got out, I found that I had a message from you. Well, I wrote back and you know the rest."

There was an awkward silence that last a few moments. Finally, Tigress spoke up.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"Of course you didn't. I didn't tell anyone. You're the first person I've told."

"I know it's not saying much but I'm glad you're okay now."

"I am, too. Believe me though, those words mean a lot more to me than you might think. Anyways, we're almost at the base. The edge is about 100 meters away. Let's go."

Heaven's Angel turned back around and headed towards the edge. When both AC's cleared the forest, Heaven's Angel stopped again.

Tigress appeared once more on the viewscreen. "Hey! Why'd you stop this ti… Oh my god…"

_AN: Sorry for the long wait. School's been hectic and haven't many ideas to use. I hope ya'll will enjoy this chapter. Thanks so far for all the reviews!_

_awbachellor:I tried taking in some of your advice. I've also edited Chapter 1 with fewer timestamps. I tried to keep that in mind for this chapter as well. Thanks for the review and I hope you stay interested :)_

_Dra Gan: I'm glad you liked my story. I too have the same wish but maybe not tv or movie since they have a tendency to drift away from the feel of the game. And I've updated as you can so and hopefully "for the love of all that is good" instead of bad :)_


	3. Secrets Revealed

**_Armored Core: The Defining Moment_  
Chapter 3: Secrets Revealed**  
By KirKTimN

_Disclaimer: I do not own Armored Core or any name in Armored Core._

Panzer I  
1200 Terra Standard Time

A dark blue AC with light blue trim came up to the giant ring. It was a hover tank type that had a heavyweight exceed orbit core. In each hand, it held a Karasawa MK II and a linear cannon on it back.

"Well boys this is it," Archon said into his mic as his AC Zenith Strike turned to face his squad. "Is everyone ready?"

"Templar here. Everything's green." He was the squad's second in command. The blue eye-slit on his white middleweight AC Crusader pulsed once. He had a laser machine gun and an energy shield on his arms. On his back was a rack of micromissle launchers on each shoulder.

"This is Arbiter. I'm ready." Arbiter was the squad's long range expert. He had a blue hover AC named Psionic Storm with a camo pattern. His AC was equipped with a long range laser cannon and a small missile launcher on its shoulders. In one hand it had a sniper rifle, and it had an energy blade on the other.

"Zealot's ready to go," the squadron's close range Raven said. His lightweight AC Fenix was equipped with VIXEN legs and a pair of ELF2 blades. He had PEGASUS boosters on his shoulders.

"Corsair here. I'm good." He was the only Raven in the squad that wasn't using a traditional AC. AC Artanis had no visible weapons what-so-ever. Nor did it appear to have hands or feet. Instead of walking, it glided from place to place using jump jets situated where its feet were. Each of its arms ended with the muzzle of a laser gun. It also had the unique ability to change to a flying mode. This made Corsair the squad's scout and air support.

Zenith Strike turned back towards the ring. It was huge, no gigantic. It was big enough for three AC's to go in at the same time. It had strange drawings and writing all over its circumference which made the strange ring look old yet new at the same time. Another strange thing about the ring was the fact that it was tilted at a 45-degree angle.

"Okay, Executor Squad. This is Gate Station 1. We're starting up the sequence," said a comm officer in the control center of the research base that was built inside the asteroid. The commandingofficer looked over to a tech who started typing on the holoboard of his computer.

"Sequence initiated. Generators are energizing the ring," reported the tech. "Estimated time for activation. 30 seconds."

"_GS1, you're absolutely sure this is a gate right? Not some sort of weapon?_" asked Archon.

"There's only one way to find out Executor Lead," came the reply from the comm officer.

"5 seconds. 4… 3… 2… 1… Activating," the tech said.

Energy cackled and surged around the ring and arced across the diameter. The sparks of energy kept arcing and met in the center of the ring. Soon, the bolts became beams and started to rotate around the center. The beams started fanning out and created a solid disc of light within the ring. Pulses were being emitted from the center, and when they hit the edge, they headed back towards the center again. The pulses became more frequent and the asteroid started to shake.

Finally, there was a loud boom and the disc became black, and everything suddenly became quiet and still. The ring looked stable with the gateway inside it and purple arcs of lighting occasionally jumped into it from the edge. Inside the control center, everything was a mess. Shelves and desks were turned over, but, fortunately, the projectors for the holocomputers had been secured to the floor so they were still working fine. The commanding officer slowly stood to his feet and looked around.

"Is everyone alright?" Various affirmative groans and grunts came from everyone in the room. The techs started cleaning up the mess caused by the gate activation.

"Sir, you gotta see this…" said a tech who was already at a computer.

"What is it?"

"Well, it appears that we were right. It's some sort of gateway. Everything looks stable from here."

"What about those purple energy bolts? And where does this gateway lead?"

"The bolts seem harmless. They must be an effect of the gate. As for where it goes, launching probe right now… Unable to determine where the gateway leads to."

"What do you mean 'unable to determine'? What happened to the probe?"

"I don't know, sir. We just lost signal."

"Well we have no choice… We'll see what Executor Squad wants to do."

Arbiter blinked twice and shook his head. He checked all his systems to make sure everything was ok.

"_Executor Lead, this is GS1. We've seemed to run into a problem. This… thing is a gateway alright. The problem is we dunno where it goes. We've sent a probe but the signal was lost due to unknown circumstances. I don't want to risk losing good men like you on this, but we don't know when we'll get another opportunity. So, I'm leaving the choice up to you. If you want to walk away and wait for another chance, no one will blame you, and it'll be a lot safer. But, if you want to go for it now we'll do our best to make sure everything goes alright. We'll maintain contact for as long as possible, and you are to report in every hour,_" said the commanding officer over the comm.

"Okay, men. You hear that? This is what we've been waiting for, and now, they're not sure if it's safe for us. Personally, I didn't wait this long just to wait even longer for them to make sure it's safe. But, I'm not going to make any decisions without you guys. So what'd you say?"

Each of the Ravens gave their go aheads for the mission.

"Alright. Gate Station 1, this is Executor Lead. We're going for it."

"_Acknowledged, Executor Lead. Good luck._"

"Executor Squad, move out! Templar, you're with me. We're going in first. If we meet trouble I want to hit it hard. Corsair and Zealot, you're behind us. Corsair, once we get through, I want you to do an overhead sweep and report what you see as soon as we're through. Zealot, I want you on point defense. If anything gets too close you nail it. Arbiter, you bring up the rear. You have the longest range, so you can hit everything before we can even from the back. Also, I want you to watch our backs and blast anything before it gets too close. Well what're you waiting for? An engraved invitation from the Ninebreaker?"

The AC's fell in and walked up to the gate. Zenith Strike looked up and around as if to take in the vastness of the ring. Then, without another word, Executor Squad stepped into the unknown.

_AN : Ok. Very sorry for the super long wait. Had my birthday, Thanksgiving, and finals to deal with. Also, just had my wisdom teeth pulled so I'm still a lil woozy. Anyways, I hope ya'll enjoyed this chapter. Personally, I don't think it's all to great. It seems kinda weak to me, but who knows, maybe you'll like it. I know it's a sudden jump in characters, but I have good reason for this. Seraph and Tigress will be back in the next chapter (that's what I'm planning anyway) so don't worry. So relax, read, and review! Tell me what you think, and I'll fix anything that might need fixing. Thanks!_


End file.
